Hello lovely funsters
Nearly time for the first of our french hols this year. I'm not great with roads that have big drops by the side of them, mountain-road phobia, must be a name for it somewhere !!! Anyhoo ! Desperately wanting to visit the above area in June. Mainly to look around the Cathar sites, visit Carcassonne etc. Any suggestions for routes that minimise steep gorge roads ? Some of these places in particular .............
Gard
Nearly time for the first of our french hols this year. I'm not great with roads that have big drops by the side of them, mountain-road phobia, must be a name for it somewhere !!! Anyhoo ! Desperately wanting to visit the above area in June. Mainly to look around the Cathar sites, visit Carcassonne etc. Any suggestions for routes that minimise steep gorge roads ? Some of these places in particular .............
Gard
- Bagnols sur Cèze (30) Musée Albert André. Fine collection of late 19th century French art, including works by Bonnard, Matisse, Marquet, Signac, Jongkind, Rodin and more.
- Nimes: (30) old city with narrow streets, and remarkable Roman remains, including the Arena and the Maison Carrée
- Le Pont du Gard: (30) UNESCO World Heritage site, impressive Roman aqueduct, just north east of Nimes.
- Aigues Mortes: (30) fortified town near the coast, once a port from which the Crusaders set forth.
- Montpellier: (34) regional capital, with old centre, the Musée Fabre, churches and other sites.
- Agde : attractive old small city, old streets, market, cathedral, waterfront.
- Béziers: (34) traditional Languedoc city, with old streets, churches and gardens.
- St. Guilhen le Désert (34) - small mediaeval city with romanesque abbey and ruined castle. Also the nearby Grotte de la Clamouse: magnificent stalacmites and stalagtites.
- Sète: (34) fishing and commercial port. Old town, beaches, boat trips
- Narbonne: (11) former Roman city, once the regional capital, with an impressive cathedral, underground Roman grain-store, and canalside quays.
- Carcassonne: (11) UNESCO World Heritage site, a historic city encircled by medieval ramparts.
- Cathar country: a collection of fabulous mediaeval castles, veritable eagles nests perched on rocky crags, guarding over this once turbulent frontier region. Of special note are the castles of Quéribus and Puylaurens.
- Cathar country tourist train, departs from Rivesaltes near Perpignan, and rises to Axat in the Pyrenees.
- The Canal du Midi: (34, 11) UNESCO World Heritage site, the world's oldest major canal, opened in 1681, linking the Mediterranean and the Atlantic
- Céret (66): Museum of Modern Art, with works by Picasso, Chagall, Matisse, Braque etc.
- Collioure & Banyuls: (66) picturesque villages almost on the Spanish border, where the Pyrenees meet the sea.